Osprey Farpoint 40

Introduction:Why Choose A Carry On Backpack?

Before the rise of low cost airlines and fees for checking bags a backpack for going traveling with used to basically mean a hiking backpack.

Whereas hiking backpacks are designed for carrying a lot of stuff over long distances they weren't specifically designed for city breaks and aviation tourism.... they were designed for... well going hiking... doh!

But what if your not going hiking...​

In recent years a new breed of travel backpack has evolved to meet the needs of fleet-footed carry on travelers. Carry on travel backpacks are in fact the lesser known rival of the typical wheeled rolling carry on luggage.

Wheeled carry on luggage is alright for your grandma or The Man but if you are more of a free spirit with reasonably strong shoulders then this post is for you.

Reese had the right idea with carrying a backpack but she packed too much crap in her bag.

Carry on backpacks are​ superior to most rolling luggage for one main reason:

The soft sides of Carry on backpacks offer great flexibility and really help combat strict airline rules that vary around the world.

You can always squeeze a soft sided bag to fit but with a rigid suitcase you are more likely to fall foul of the carry on police.

Also with good shoulder straps backpacks are comfortable and allow you to move freely.

And... they are cheaper than rollaboards and have less moving parts that can break.​

If you're thinking that your carry on is too heavy to carry on your back then you might be interested to know that as much as half the weight of a typical rolling carry on comes from the bag itself.

Those wheels and metal frame and case all add up.

Weight restrictions are rare in the US but international airlines often have weight restrictions as well as size restrictions. And the limits can be low as 10 or 15 lbs. I've seen rolling carry on bags that weigh 10 lbs alone!!​

All this means that a carry on backpack is the ultimate carry on for most travelers.

How Were The﻿﻿﻿ ﻿﻿﻿Backpacks Tested?

​I'm a little worried I'll get banned from Amazon one day for ordering and then returning items for refund ) But that's mostly what I did to test out these backpacks.

For a few bags I also went in store and did a thorough examination​.

Each bag was packed, unpacked and packed again using typical luggage items. I went more long walks wearing heavy backpacks than I care to remember!

I consulted professional travelers and asked them what backpack they were using as well as searched the whole net for any positive or negative thing written about the bags mentioned.

You need to be careful when buying a carry on backpack because manufacturers will write things such as "IATA Approved Carry On" and "Flight Approved Carry On". This is totally misleading since there is no official standard for carry on luggage size. Each airline sets it's own limits.

I consider myself a bit of an expert on carry on size limits since I maintain the world best resource of all the world's airlines carry on size limits.​ The good news is there are rarely problems with backpacks due to the squeeze factor.

Any backpack that wasn't a good size for a carry on was not considered. This ruled out hiking backpacks with metal frames. I also discounted any bag that was not marketed primarily as a backpack. i.e. some duffel bags can transform to backpacks but they are mainly designed to be duffel bags. These were not considered since their main function was not as a travel backpack.

All the backpacks considered are marketed as travel backpack and hence many have features like passport pockets and water bottle holders that are common on carry on backpacks.

I evaluated each bag with a points scoring system. This was weighted towards comfort and durability since that's what I believe makes the best backpack.

Not being much of a fashion guru I didn't give much weight to matters of fashion. Regular readers will know that I am very much a practical guy when it comes to carry on luggage. If you want fashion advice find another blog ))​

Take It To The Limit With These 4 Large Carry On Travel Backpacks

If you're in the US and you want your backpack to be as big as it possibly can be...

And you never plan on leaving America and you want to pack as much crap as you possibly can into your huge backpack so that every journey is also a work out...

Then this section might be for you:

Large carry on backpacks﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿ close to 45 liters:

Allow you to take the maximum amount of good stuff with you.

Allow you to take the maximum amount of crap with you.

Can become too big and heavy to carry comfortably.

FOR HEAVYWEIGHT PACKERS

eBags TLS Mother Lode Review

The eBags Mother Lode is designed to make full use of the 22x14x9 inches limit that is common is the US.

This bag is a MLC (Maximum Legal Carryon). It's size and numerous pockets make it a great bag for packing but perhaps not a great bag for carrying.

Switching between this and the Farpoint 40 with similar loads easily highlighted the ​superior comfort of the Farpoint.

People love this bag because it's roomy. If you want really want roomy ​and you don't plan on carrying this for more than 45 minutes at at time then it might be a good choice for you.

It's more of a "taxi to the hotel" type of bag rather than a "we'll walk it​ and catch some sites on the way" type of bag.

It's the cheapest bag that starts to feel like quality. With this combination of price, features and materials Ebags have picked up huge numbers of happy customers across the web.

Reviews are overwhelmingly positive and the small numbers of complaints almost always relate to comfort and weight. This pattern fits in with our perceptions of the bag.​

It doesn't help that this thing is almost 4 lbs before you even put anything in it. That's a lot for a soft sided backpack. If you load the Mother Lode fully it's going to be quite heavy.

Personally if I was buying eBags I’d opt for the slightly smaller Mother Lode Junior. It’s 19.5″ x 14″ x 9″ so that makes it 41.5 liters. This is ample and will help to stop you overloading the bag with unnecessary crap and make it lighter and easier to carry.

96%

Satisfaction Rating

Size: 22" x 14" x 9" inches

3 lbs 15 oz

45 Liters

Lifetime Warranty

Not the most comfortable if fully loaded.

No padding on the hip belt and it doesn't do much to transfer weight to the hips

Osprey Porter 46 Review

Of course that MLC term can be a bit misleading... it does depend on who you are flying with.

​The Porter 46 has been a popular carry on backpack for a number of years. It has two modes: backpack mode and duffel mode.

​In backpack mode you should be okay to carry this for a couple of hours at a time. Maybe as a hiking company Osprey have got the know-how, experience or inclination to take the weight off the shoulders that companies such as ebags or Cabin Max don't.

It's a subtly different market... all these bags are designed for the urban travel market but​ Osprey seems to give that little bit consideration to carrying the backpack for longer periods.

​Because this bag is at the absolute max of permitted carry on size there have been some reports of people being advised to check it.

This is a deal clincher... the whole point of a carry on backpack is not needing to check it.

​For other people though the huge size is exactly why they love it... if you really struggle to get your stuff down to carry on size and will need as many liters are you can possible get then the Porter is a good choice.

But the possibility of getting challenged at check in gates is the main reason the Porter 46 couldn't win the best carry on backpack. The best carry on backpack needs to take you through the check in gates without fear of being stopped and made to check.

Cabin Max Metz Review

Because it's been designed for the European aviation market it's dimensions are 55x40x20 cm.

This means it's actually a little too wide for airlines in the US as 40 cm is 15.74 inches where many US airlines specify 14 inches. However this won't will be a problem due to the squeeze factor.

The main problem with this bag is the lack of a laptop compartment. There is also no side handle and no waist straps. The backpack straps don't pack away or anything like that. This bag is a backpack and only a backpack.

I don't see the Cabin Max Metz as being a bag for long term travel and it's not a backpack I'd want on my back for long periods of time. But for occasional use and if you are leaving the laptop at home then it's not a bad cheap option.

Jetset Around The World With

These 5 International Sized Travel Carry On Backpacks

If you've decided to carry your own carry on then you've probably already started to get into the mindset of a lightweight traveler.

Depending on the duration of your trip and how into minimalism you are you might be looking for a travel backpack that is smaller than the carry on size limits.

These medium carry on backpacks don't take it to the max but are by no means small backpacks.

I think that 30 - 40 liters is the sweet spot for longer term international travel. You will encounter fewer problems with size limits and by not taking the largest possible carry on your load will be a little lighter.

If you've decided to travel with a medium carry on backpack then these are the bags for you:

Great for international travel

Decent amount of space

Leaving 5 or 10 liters on the table is something some packers can't bear.

FOR MEDIUMWEIGHT PACKERS

Osprey Farpoint 40 Review

This was my favorite backpack from all that I tested and receives my highest recommendation.

Osprey are an outdoors adventure company but the Farpoi﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿nt 40 is very much a travel backpack rather than a hiking backpack.

But they do bring that hiking experience to the design of the Farpoint 40.

It's a fully featured bag with pretty much everything a long or short term traveler might need.

It comes in 2 sizes small/medium and medium/large. These are designed for people of different heights. The larger bag is slightly longer. I think the main reason for this is so that the hip strap gets somewhere near your hips.

The backpack straps on this bag are comfortable and I could carry this bag for long periods of time.

Size wise it's just about perfect for making the most of international carry on luggage size limits. If you packed it to 100% capacity with zero squeeze room then you might run into trouble with a few airlines. But then you'd just need to jettison a few pairs of socks and squeeze it down to fit.

The laptop compartment is on the outside of the pack away from your back and this makes for poor weight distribution but for my lightweight Surface Pro 3 this wasn't a problem. If you have a beast of a laptop then you might be better looking elsewhere.

Top Power 8006 35L Review

This review is for the larger 35 liter version. We didn't test the 22 liter.

If you are checking this bag on Amazon you need to be careful since many of the reviews are for the smaller backpack which is more suited to be a bag for school or university.​

As well as the fact that really the reviews are really for 2 different bags also there are a lot of reviews where the reviewer received the product for free.... and while it's against the Amazon terms to give positive reviews in exchange for products nothing helps to get the praise flowing than free stuff.

So take the Amazon rating with a pinch of salt... but this doesn't make the Top Power a bad bag. Here are my thoughts:​

If you like to compartmentalize then you're in luck here... there are loads of compartments. The price is right and I like the way it looks. The top handle could do with a bit more padding.

This isn't a load bearing backpack but if you are packing light and just want to throw a laptop and some merino underpants in there then it's a good pack for that style of travel.​

I'd say you want to keep your load under 15 lbs for this bag to work well. For many people that's too big an ask.​

It takes only a few minutes to wash clothes in the hotel room sink and if you choose the right type of materials it will be dry by morning.

FOR LIGHTWEIGHT PACKERS

Timbuk2 Uptown Travel Backpack Review

The Timbuk2 Uptown is designed for both everyday use on the commute and travel further afield.

It's TSA compliant and this means that you don't need to remove the laptop before going through the scanners at the airport.

As a carry on it suits minimalist travelers or non-minimalist travelers going on short trips.

It's got great features for storing your laptop and passports etc.

As a 30 liter pack it's roughly two thirds ​the maximum volume for a carry on bag.

This could be used for long term travel but it would need to be in combination with travel clothes and/or laundry on the road.​ It's not the type of bag you can use for a 2 week trip without doing laundry.

The Uptown comes in 10 different styles. It's a great bag that can be used both a home and when traveling and as a day pack on excursions from the hotel. So you can save money because you don't need to buy 2 bags.

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Sammy says

No no no. 45-46 liters isn’t too heavy or indulgent – it’s perfectly utilitarian. Yeah, they have stuff wherever it is you’re going, but you’re going to have to put that stuff somewhere. In your 40 liter? I don’t think so. Been backpacking with an Osprey 46 for years and it’s the best investment I’ve ever made. It’s still minimalist, trust me.

If you are happy with your Osprey 46 then more power to you 🙂 But even my Farpoint 40 can be too heavy for my liking if it’s fully packed.

I’m taking a month-long trip to Russia starting next weekend and I intend to travel with a 13 liter Bobby Anti-theft Backpack because I want to test it out.

I will need to make sacrifices… like leaving my Aeropress coffee maker behind. Like reading on my phone instead of the Kindle reader or just listening to audiobooks. Like leaving behind the tablet that I use as a 2nd monitor for my laptop. And there might be expenses like I will probably buy 3 bottles of shampoo instead of 1… because each time I move on I will leave the bottle behind.

But I’m pretty confident I can pack for this trip with 13 liters.

But it’s not about less is best. It’s not a competition and I don’t really view taking more things as indulgent. Less is different, it has positives and negatives. It’s just whatever balance works best for you )

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